Electronic tap with operating system at the end of the spout

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to an electronic faucet with a head ( 15 ) that incorporates the operative system for controlling dispensing of the water. The head is mounted at the end of the spout ( 4 ). Furthermore, the tap is equipped with a by-pass system for manual operation in an emergency when the operative system has a malfunction.

The present invention relates to an electronic faucet with head thatincorporates the operative system for the water outlet and the relativeemergency system.

Electronic faucets equipped with photocells, proximity sensors, etc. arewell-known in the art and allow the water jet to be dispensed only whenthe presence of a user or means (for example, a glass) is detected.

The advantage of these faucets is that they facilitate the water outletwhen, for example, hands are dirty, providing not only hygiene andcleanliness but water savings.

Traditional electronic faucets as known in the art (Patent No.US20090094740, Patent No. FR2761446) comprise systems dispensing thewater jet by employing automatic vertical and/or frontal sensors,powered by batteries and with manual emergency function. Nevertheless,these faucets have highly complex components that make installation,battery replacement and spout rotation difficult. In fact, manycomponents are located below the sink deck making installation andmaintenance very complex and can only be performed by a skilledtechnician.

Given the above, it is evident there is a need for a solution thatallows “electronic” faucets to comprise suitable equipment fordispensing the water jet in an optimum manner that overcomes thedisadvantages of the known art.

The solution provided for with this invention falls within this context,as it can be adapted to various types of sinks.

Therefore, the scope of the present invention is the construction of anelectronic faucet with a head that incorporates the operative system forthe water outlet, allowing the limits of known technology to be overcomeand obtaining an improvement in the technical results describedpreviously.

In addition, a further scope of the present invention is theconstruction of a system requiring shorter times and lower costs ofinstallation as well as limited management costs.

Yet another aim of the invention is the construction of an electronicfaucet that is substantially simple, safe and reliable.

The present invention will now be described with preferred, butnot-limiting, embodiments, with specific reference to the figures in theattached drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a prospective view, chosen as for purely illustrativepurposes, with no limitation to the scope of the invention for thisshape of faucet, in which the faucet has a vertical sensor (1) and afront sensor (2);

FIG. 2 shows a cross-section of the construction of the faucet with allits components and their relative optimum placement;

FIGS. 3.1 and 3.2 illustrate two perspective views of the upper part ofthe head where the batteries are located, two sensors (frontal (2) andvertical (1)), and the LED (14) that signals operation and low batterypower;

FIGS. 4 and 5 respectively show a perspective view of the insides of thefaucet and a cross-section of the spout showing the by-pass (17)constructed as per this invention;

FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of the head support body (20) forinserting the front sensor and/or vertical sensor, constructed accordingto this invention.

This is a preferable but not exhaustive example of construction; it canbe seen that the head consists of a glass disc with natural or coloredbackground (15), where a cut (23) is made using a laser or grinder, thattherefore becomes transparent in the cut area. This disk can be the samecolor as the spout.

A LED holder (22), for the sensors, is applied to the head (15). Thesensor (21) with the electronic control circuit is then in turn insertedin the LED holder (22). This entire unit is then fixed in place and kepttogether by the head support body (20), which also holds the batteries(7), facilitating replacement. The infrared sensors (21) can thereforefunction perfectly through the cut (23) obtaining the “on-off” functionfor the faucet. This results in a head with an invisible optical sensorthat, above all, is not subject to problems due to scratches andconsequent malfunction as the glass is highly resistant compared to theother traditional sensors available on the market.

A very important point about the head is that it has a very pleasantappearance, as the colored glass (15) can be made in the exact samecolor tone as the water delivery spout.

In FIG. 3.1 the LED (14), for example red, can be seen which serves tosignal the detection of the hand or object and the dispensing of thewater, or to indicate that the batteries (7) are low in power.

This LED can also be replaced with a back-lit system (see FIGS. 3.1 and3.2, and Reference 16) which makes the head with the front sensor evenmore pleasing and attractive. In this case, the LED holder (22) in FIG.6 houses multiple LEDs (14) which, turning on. together, create a soft,graphic, very modern effect.

The head can function with 1.5 volt alkaline batteries, which are themost economic and common around the world. They are incorporated insidethe spout, located in the area next to the sensors, therefore in aneasy, accessible position for replacement.

By placing all of the electronics inside the head and the head insidethe spout (4), the spout (4) can freely rotate 360° around itself,compared to known faucets to the current state of the art. Therefore,inserting the head that incorporates the operative system for the waterflow completely within the faucet spout represents a true innovation,making installation, maintenance, and battery replacement not only quickand problem-free but extremely simple.

Therefore, inside the faucet there are no wires that can twist andbreak, as occurs in certain existing faucets that function with aclassic power transformer.

The ease and simplicity of installation can be understood from FIG. 2and is complete with the details of the hoses (10), check valves (11)and stopcocks (12) with filters that can be inspected for impurities inthe water.

The usefulness of this solution is immediately evident. Furtherinnovation in this invention is the possibility, when the head cannotoperate because the batteries are exhausted, to discharge the watermanually and for temporary emergencies using a by-pass system. FIGS. 4and 5 show the screw (17) that turns a half-turn with a screw driver(19) or a coin and acts as a by-pass for the water, functioning inparallel with the solenoid valve (9). In fact, it is sufficient to turnthe spout (4) and turn the screw (17) located behind the spout and notunder the sink deck, as known in the art, making the operation verysimple and accessible for everyone.

The screw (17) acts as a by-pass in place of the magnetic coil (8) thatcannot function due to the lack of energy when the batteries areexhausted. The membrane inside the solenoid valve (9) is lifted and atthis point the water flows out continuously.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example, with no limitation of scope, of theinvention, in which all the components are shown in their properpositions which allow for the construction of the electronic faucetdescribed thus far.

This invention has been described for illustrative purposes with nolimitation of scope in the preferred shape of construction; the presentinvention includes any alterations and further modifications of theillustrated devices and described methods and further applications ofthe principles of the invention which would normally occur to oneskilled in the art to which the invention relates, as described in theattached claims.

1-8. (canceled)
 9. A faucet, comprising: a spout having a head endthrough which water is dispensed; a valve system connected to the spoutfor controlling flow of water through the spout; an electronic mechanismpositioned at the head end of the spout for electronically controllingoperation of the valve system to dispense water; and a bypass systemconnected to the valve system enabling manual control of the valvesystem to dispense water when desired.
 10. The faucet of claim 9,wherein the electronic mechanism comprises an electronic control circuitincluding one or more sensors for detecting presence of a user or anobject near the faucet to activate the valve system to dispense waterand one or more batteries for powering the electronic control circuit.11. The faucet of claim 10, wherein the electronic control circuit andthe one or more batteries are mounted as a unit in a holder in the headend of the spout to facilitate replacement of the unit or the one ormore batteries.
 12. The faucet of claim 9, wherein the one or moresensors comprise a vertical sensor.
 13. The faucet of claim 9, whereinthe one or more sensors comprise a front sensor.
 14. The faucet of claim9, wherein the one or more sensors comprise a vertical sensor and afront sensor.
 15. The faucet of claim 9, wherein the one or more sensorscomprise one or more optical sensors.
 16. The faucet of claim 9, whereinthe electronic mechanism further comprises a light emitting diode or aback-light system to signal detection of a user or an object near thefaucet.
 17. The faucet of claim 9, wherein the electronic mechanismfurther comprises a light emitting diode or a back-light system tosignal low battery power.
 18. The faucet of claim 9, further comprisinga protective glass piece for the electronic mechanism positioned at thehead end of the spout, said glass piece having a colored portion and atransparent portion, wherein one or more sensors in the electronicmechanism operate through the transparent portion of the glass piece todetect presence of a user or an object near the faucet.
 19. The faucetof claim 9, wherein the colored portion of the glass piece has a colormatching a color of the spout.
 20. The faucet of claim 19, wherein theglass piece comprises a glass disk, and wherein the transparent portionof the glass piece resembles a slit in the glass disk.
 21. The faucet ofclaim 9, further comprising a back-light system behind the glass piece.22. The faucet of claim 21, wherein the back-light system comprises aplurality of light emitting diodes.
 23. The faucet of claim 9, whereinpositioning of the electronic mechanism in the head end of the spoutenables free rotation of the spout relative to a surface on which thefaucet is mounted.
 24. The faucet of claim 9, wherein the valve systemincludes a solenoid valve controlled by the electronic mechanism, andwherein the bypass system can be activated to cause continuous flow ofwater through the solenoid valve.
 25. The faucet of claim 24, whereinthe bypass system can be activated by turning a screw in the bypasssystem.